University of Oxford The City of London and the Problem of the Liberties, c1540 – c1640 A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Modern History Anthony Paul House Christ Church Trinity Term 2006 2 3 Preface In the thesis that follows, dates have been left in Old Style, with the year beginning on 25 March. For dates between 1 January and 24 March, double years (e.g. 1546/7) are given to avoid confusion. In quotes from original sources, spelling has been maintained, except where u/v and i/j have been transposed to their modern uses. Abbreviations have been silently expanded and punctuation modernised. Accurate terminology is exceedingly important when discussing the liberties. For an explanation of the term liberty itself, see p. 14 below. The term precinct, which referred to one of the administrative units of the City of London, was also used in a more general way by contemporaries, to refer to any defined area (such as a liberty). The difference should be clear contextually. While not all of London’s religious foundations were monasteries, the term post-monastic has here been used as a catch-all for the dispossessed property of those foundations. Following modern convention, City is used as shorthand for the City of London. Although used sparingly, city should be taken to refer to the urbanised area more generally. The intellectual debts I have rung up in the process of producing this thesis are far too numerous and extensive to ever be repaid. First and foremost, I owe thanks to Dr Ian Archer, without whose supervision and friendship I could never have formulated (let alone executed) this study. His help and guidance have made me into an historian, largely in spite of myself. Similar thanks are due to Prof. Tommaso Astarita, who drew me into history in the first instance and has proved tenaciously supportive ever since. Particular gratitude is also due to the Early Modern Britain seminar at Oxford and the Medieval and Tudor London seminar at the Institute of Historical Research, at which earlier versions of parts of this thesis were presented. Their comments and questions provided valuable perspective on the broader historical place of the liberties. Dr Toby Barnard provided welcome guidance on merging distinct case studies into a coherent whole; I can only hope that I have done his advice justice. I owe a broader debt of gratitude to those who provided practical and tactical assistance in pursuing my research. The staff of the Upper Reading Room at Bodley’s Library were particularly patient with the number of large and ungainly books I have asked them to shelve and reshelve for me over the past three years, while those in Duke Humfrey’s Library and the Modern Papers Reading Room have helped me track down and consult missing or damaged materials. The staff at the Guildhall Library and Lambeth Palace Library provided sage advice on finding obscure but useful references to the liberties, for which I thank them heartily. Similarly, I must thank Dr Richard Mortimer, Keeper of the Muniments at Westminster Abbey, and Dr Karen Wolfe, the curator of manuscripts at the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, for patiently enduring my presence while I pored over their respective collections. Finally, I must thank my family and friends, who have suffered through countless conversations about early modern London and its liberties over the past three years. I am truly grateful for their forbearance and their support. 4 Contents Chapter 1. Introduction .................................................................................................................. 7 Chapter 2. The Liberties and the City of London..................................................................... 23 Taxation ...................................................................................................................................... 38 Building Control and Environmental Regulation................................................................. 41 Aliens........................................................................................................................................... 52 Conclusions................................................................................................................................ 67 Chapter 3. The Minories ............................................................................................................... 69 Chronology................................................................................................................................. 73 The Parish of Holy Trinity....................................................................................................... 76 The Ordnance Office and the Secular Status of the Minories............................................ 90 The Minories’ Community..................................................................................................... 100 Conclusions.............................................................................................................................. 107 Chapter 4. Blackfriars.................................................................................................................. 111 Residents................................................................................................................................... 123 Playing in Blackfriars............................................................................................................... 127 Governance .............................................................................................................................. 131 Aliens......................................................................................................................................... 146 Conclusions.............................................................................................................................. 151 Chapter 5. St Katherine by the Tower...................................................................................... 153 Chronology............................................................................................................................... 154 St Katherine’s Community..................................................................................................... 162 Maintaining Order................................................................................................................... 172 Aliens......................................................................................................................................... 179 Conclusions.............................................................................................................................. 182 Chapter 6. St Martin le Grand.................................................................................................... 183 Chronology............................................................................................................................... 188 Sanctuary and the Royal Government.................................................................................. 196 Westminster Abbey and St Martin’s ..................................................................................... 203 Local Administration .............................................................................................................. 209 Aliens......................................................................................................................................... 215 Conclusions.............................................................................................................................. 220 Chapter 7. Conclusions ............................................................................................................... 221 Bibliography.................................................................................................................................. 225 Manuscript Sources................................................................................................................. 225 Secondary Sources................................................................................................................... 230 Unpublished Secondary Sources........................................................................................... 246 5 Figures 2.1 Patents of Denization Issued, 1558-1640................................................................. 57 2.2 The Percentage of Strangers Holding Patents of Denization, May 1583............ 58 3.1 Clergy Salaries at Holy Trinity Minories, 1567-1597.............................................. 108 3.2 Poor Relief in the Minories, 1567-1596.................................................................... 109 3.3 The Distribution of Poor Relief at Holy Trinity Minories.................................... 110 4.1 Reported Numbers of Aliens in the Liberties, 1567-1583..................................... 147 4.2 Denization and English Church Membership in Blackfriars, St Katherine’s and St Martin’s, 1568 and 1583.................................................................................. 147 5.1 London Plague Mortality............................................................................................ 173 6.1 English Church Membership among Aliens in Select Areas of London, 1568.. ............................................................................................................. 216 6.2 The Percentage of Strangers